Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Tuesday terminated the services ofthree more government employees for their alleged involvement with Pakistan-based terror groups, Lashkar-e-Taiba and Hizbul Mujahideen, NDTV reported.

This takes the number of such terminations since 2020 to 83.

The three persons who have been removed are Malik Ishfaq Naseer, a police constable, Ajaz Ahmed, a government school teacher and Waseem Ahmad Khan, a junior assistant at the Government Medical College in Srinagar, according to government orders issued by the general administration department.

The government orders announcing the sackings said that the three persons had been dismissed under Article 311 of the Constitution. This provision protects civil servants from arbitrary dismissal but allows exceptions on the grounds of national security.

Commenting on the terminations, Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti asked why the Jammu and Kashmir government was watching the development “completely unmoved like a mute bystander”.

“Since 2019 hundred of employees have been summarily dismissed without even a trial solely based on unproven allegations of so called terror affiliations,” Mufti said. “While this iron fist approach may create a facade of normalcy genuine sustainable peace can’t be achieved by inflicting suffering on people.”

J&K People’s Conference Sajad Lone said that the terminations were unfortunate. “Time has come to stop this whole practice or retribution,” he said on X. “This termination concept has been going on for decades. It has not helped in the past. It will not help in the future.”

In February as well, Opposition parties had criticised Chief Minister Omar Abdullah for not halting the terminations.

Abdullah’s ruling National Conference had pledged to review such orders in its 2024 Assembly election manifesto. The party won the Assembly polls in October.